3 doubts - Suggestion please.

piyuK

Dear Plas ,

Please clarify my 3 doubts – I have done enough of googling but still wants to hear from your personal experience.

Age – 34, female, mother of one
CW – 134lb/61kg
GW – 118lb/54kg
Height – 5.2” or 157.5cm

1. Which activity level , should I choose in MFP ?
Have a 10 hours/day desk job, travel by bus for 2-3 hours daily, doesn’t do much of house work, little bit cooking, have a kid of 3 years, daily step count 10,000+, sleep 7-8 hours.

2. Should I add my step count as exercise (?) and eat that calorie?

3. Should I eat BMR or TDEE-20% or any other formula ?

Thanks in advance.:flowerforyou:

piyuK

bumping so that it doesnt go misisng.

SKME2013

I would set your activity level as sedentary. What kind of pedometer do you use? I have fitbit and it syncs with MFP.
Stef.

120by30

1. If you're sure that you are taking 10,000+ steps per day, I would go with at least lightly active for your activity level. Are you wearing a pedometer to check your steps?

2. Don't count the steps if it's just normal, everyday activity. This would be included in your activity level.

3. Plug your info into your goals and go with what MFP gives you. This would mean meeting your given calorie goal, and adding any extra exercise to your diary and eating a portion of those calories back. However, please make sure you don't choose a goal of losing 2 pounds per week. I think most people make this mistake when they first start out, myself included. With so little to lose, it would probably be best to choose .5 pound per week. Give it 2 weeks to a month to see if you've made any progress and adjust your calorie needs up or down as needed.

By the way, I'm 5'2", as well, with a goal of 120 pounds,

piyuK

Thanks for the reply ladies :-)

Yes I do wear a pedometer (BUDD-E), it doesnt sync with MFP. But gives very accurate reading.

piyuK

any more?

ageeeboro

You could try using this calculator:
http://www.exrx.net/Calculators/CalRequire.html,
and input the hours you spend walking, cooking and sleeping etc..

Other than that, there's a detailed thread on accurately measuring calories needed here:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

Good luck!

SingRunTing

I do 10k steps a day (using a Fitbit, not synced with MFP). I put my activity level as lightly active and don't count my steps as exercise. Anything above the steps counts as exercise (usually running and workout videos, measured using a HRM).

StaciMarie1974

I'd say that is lightly active. Here is my reasoning why:

I use a Fitbit, and it calculates my daily burn based on activity, considering my steps as movement and my active minutes from cardio. (Or at least, cardio where I'm moving fast enough - brisk walking is cardio but doesn't always generate active minutes.)

MFP gets my activity/calorie reading from the Fitbit and uses the information on how many calories I've burned to decide whether or not I've earned extra. If I hit 10k steps, I'm about even. If I hit 12k steps, I get an extra 200-400. 12k is my goal, as my calorie goal on MFP is 1400 and I like to eat in the 1400-1600 range.

So... I'd say to stick to your MFP if you get 10k steps. If you go over, perhaps add another 50-75 calories per extra 1k steps if you feel you need/want them?

leggup

1. Which activity level , should I choose in MFP ?
Have a 10 hours/day desk job, travel by bus for 2-3 hours daily, doesn’t do much of house work, little bit cooking, have a kid of 3 years, daily step count 10,000+, sleep 7-8 hours.

2. Should I add my step count as exercise (?) and eat that calorie?

3. Should I eat BMR or TDEE-20% or any other formula ?

Thanks in advance.:flowerforyou:

1. Sedentary. You work a desk job.
Sedentary: Spend most of the day sitting (e.g. bank teller, desk job)
Lightly Active: Spend a good part of the day on your feet (e.g. teacher, salesman)
Active: Spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (e.g. waitress, mailman)
Very Active: Spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (e.g. bike messenger, carpenter)

2. Unless I am walking with the intent of exercise (i.e. to get my heart rate up), I do not count daily steps as exercise.

3. Start with the MFP guided calories and eat back 50-75% of your exercise calories (to account for errors in calorie counts on exercise). TDEE and BMR are more tailored to an individual. It helps to understand your baseline first. Follow MFP recommendations for 4-6 weeks, see the rate at which you're losing and modify as necessary.

piyuK

Thanks All.

dancingj2

1. I would suggest sedentary - I am at a desk most days so it seems like a good choice.

2. As for steps I do not count my steps as exercise. Anytime I set out for a walk or go on the treadmill I count that time as exercise.

3. I try to eat back most of my exercise calories. When I actually do that (rather than going over) I do loose weight.